Chapter 16: Exposure

Roger saw Sadie from half a block away. She was out by the curb shielding her eyes from the sun and looking up and down the street and then she appeared to yell. He pulled into Jessica’s empty driveway and saw Astrid sitting on the porch looking sullen. He got out of his car and strode over to Sadie.

“Where’s your mom? Has she found him?” he asked, urgently, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

A distressed Sadie replied, “She’s driving around the block. She’ll be back in a minute.”

Just then, Jessica pulled up to them in her Previa. She rolled down the window and sobbed, “Roger, thank you for coming. I don’t know what to do. It’s been almost a half hour and I’m going out of my mind.”

Roger struggled to contain his own anxiety as he asked, “Did you call the police? Are they looking?”

She breathed raggedly as she sputtered out a, “Yes. They left here a few minutes ago with a picture. They’re looking around the neighborhood.”

Assessing Jessica’s appearance, Roger suggested, “Why don’t you pull in and I’ll go out with you to help you look. I don’t think you’re in any condition to drive.”

Jessica pulled into her driveway and practically fell into Roger’s arms, as she opened her door. He held her tightly, as she sniffled and tried to bring her breathing under control. After standing together for a couple of minutes, Roger escorted Jessica around to the passenger side of the minivan. He had just opened the door when a police cruiser pulled into the driveway behind them.

Officers emerged from both sides of the car and the one on the passenger side opened the door to the back seat. Josh emerged from the car and calmly walked over to Jessica.

She squatted down to hug him, as she blurted out, “Oh, thank god! Where were you?”

The little boy didn’t answer, but one of the officers explained, “We found him at the elementary school’s playground.”

Looking at the officer, she exclaimed, “Oh my gosh, that’s two blocks away.” She released Josh and held him at arm’s length, asking, “What were you doing?”

“I just wanted to climb the rock wall,” he explained, calmly.

She looked over at the second officer, who came around the cruiser carrying a small bicycle with training wheels, and asked, “And you decided to ride over there by yourself?”

Josh just stared blankly at his mother.

“We’ll talk about this more, later,” Jessica told Josh, before she stood up.

She walked over to the officer with the bike and thanked him sincerely as she wheeled the bike towards the garage. She deposited it in front of the garage and instructed Sadie to go inside with Josh and Astrid, as she returned to thank the other officer. Roger opened the garage and placed the bike inside, before closing it again.

The police drove off and Roger came up to Jessica, pulling her into a firm hug. She leaned her head forward and sobbed into his chest. He held her for the few minutes it took to regain her composure. Once the tears stopped, Roger placed his hand at the top of Jessica’s back and guided her inside.

He brought her to the couch where she sat down and pulled Josh into another hug. She murmured about how worried he had made her and to never leave without her again. Roger headed into the kitchen, stopping at Astrid’s and Sadie’s rooms along the way and asking them to help him. The trio started preparing fried chicken and green beans for dinner.

After they had all eaten, Roger sat on the couch with Jessica as they sipped wine.

“Thank you so much for coming over. I was so worried, and you were the first person I thought of to help,” she said.

“Well, I’m glad you called me. Thankfully, everything worked out okay. How did it happen?” He asked.

She took a deep breath and let it out, saying, “I don’t know. They were all outside playing with the hose. I came in to get some lemonade. When I came out, Josh was nowhere to be seen. Apparently, the girls started spraying and splashing each other and lost track of him. By the time I came out, he was gone.” She took a breath and continued, “I called the police, I called you, then got in my car to look for him.”

Roger placed a sympathetic hand on Jessica’s knee, suggesting, “He’s okay, now. How are you?”

She took another deep breath and replied, “I’m better. But I feel I just lost three years of my life.”

Roger stayed until all the children were in bed and then tucked Jessica in before driving home at ten o’clock. As he drove home, he thought about Josh’s close call and realized how attached he had grown to Jessica’s kids.

As she entered Olive Garden, Jessica saw a familiar looking face at the hostess’s desk.

“Shani ... Shani Blum, is that you?” Jessica raised her voice as she saw her old college friend. “It’s me, Jessica White ... well, Carlson, now.”

“Jessica. Wow. It’s been a long time since I last saw you. You look amazing,” Shani gushed.

“Thank you. You look great, too. What are you doing here?” Jessica asked.

“I’m meeting my mom for lunch. How about you?” Shani replied.

“I’m also meeting my mom for lunch. Hey, we should sit together and catch up,” Jessica suggested.

“Okay, as long as you don’t mind some curious ears,” Shani replied and gestured to the five and seven-year-old boys seated on a nearby bench.

“No, not at all,” Jessica said.

Shani turned back to the hostess and informed her that she would need a larger table to accommodate the expanded group. The two women took seats in the waiting area, near Shani’s sons, and started to catch up.

Jessica started, “So, what have you been up to?”

“Well, after I graduated, I went to work for Synthex as a lab assistant.” Shani started, then, gesturing to her children, she said, “A couple years later, I met Glen and we got married. Then, Josh and David came along.” She paused to take a breath and consider how to tell the next part of her story.

Shani continued, “Unfortunately, it didn’t last with Glen.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jessica offered.

“Yeah, I don’t really like to talk about it in front of them,” Shani explained, as she darted her eyes to her boys. “Maybe when we get to our table, I’ll explain a little more”

Jessica nodded in understanding.

Shani asked, “How about you? What have you been up to?”

Jessica responded, “Well, I don’t know if you recall, but I was dating Blake Carlson in college. We wound up getting married and had three children together. They’re actually with him today.” Shani nodded as she looked interestedly at Jessica. “Our marriage didn’t last either. You see, we had a ... how to say this ... a compatibility issue.”

Shani put her hand on Jessica’s knee and leaned in to hear the rest. Jessica continued, “You see, I’m not exactly his type ... physically.” Not quite sure what Jessica meant, Shani just kept looking at her. Jessica lowered her voice saying, “I don’t have the right ... parts.” Seeing that Shani still didn’t understand, Jessica paused to take a breath, then quickly whispered, “He’s gay.”

Shani gasped in surprise and brought her hand to her mouth. “Oh, dear.”

Jessica responded, “Yeah, well, at least I got three wonderful children out of it. And, although I’m not sure it was worth the emotional toll, the spousal support is pretty good.”

Jessica’s mom, Diane, arrived and, within a few minutes, Shani’s mom, Bea, also arrived. They all made introductions and a couple of minutes later, the hostess showed them to their table. The two boys sat between Shani and their grandma, Jessica sat next to Shani and Diane sat between Jessica and Bea. Their server came over and took their drink orders, then the women spent a few minutes looking over the menus.

Once they decided, they put the menus down. Jessica leaned in to Shani and quietly asked, “So, what happened between you and Glen?”

Shani took a breath before starting, “Things with Glen started to go south a couple of years ago. He was doing well at his job. But that meant he was traveling more. Turns out, when he’s on the road, he can’t keep it in his pants. I found out when a strange woman left a message on our machine at home, wondering when he’d be in Houston again. I might have tried to make it work, if he had acted like he cared.” She took another cleansing breath.

Jessica placed a hand on Shani’s arm, saying, “I’m sorry your husband turned out to be a louse.”

The waiter showed up and took their orders. Once they had ordered, Jessica turned to Shani and asked, “Speaking of failed relationships, by any chance do you know a man named Roger Price?”

Shani cringed and replied, “Well, sort of. We went on one date last year. Why? Do you know him?”

Jessica smiled and said, “Well, we’ve been dating for several months now.” She paused to let the news sink in. “One day we were talking, and he mentioned that he had a date with a woman named Shani Rasch. I wasn’t sure if it was you but, given how unique your name is, I thought it might be.”

With a troubled look on her face, Shani asked, “I’m afraid to ask, but, how did my name come up?”

Jessica’s smile grew as she explained, “I don’t know if you know this, but when you went out with him, he was going through a phase where he dated a lot of women.”

Shani jumped in, “Yeah, there was some talk about that among the women at the parents group.”

Jessica nodded and went on, “So, he was telling me about some of the more interesting dates he had with those women. Your name came up.”

“Oh boy. What did he say?” Shani wondered.

“Not much,” Jessica responded. “Just that you didn’t say much, you were nervous the entire date, and you sprinted to your house when he dropped you off.”

Shani nodded at Jessica’s explanation.

“Would you mind telling me what that was about? I know Roger would like to hear what he did wrong,” Jessica inquired.

Shani took a deep breath and started, “Well, we’ve actually already talked about the issues. I think it was two things. I hadn’t even been divorced for a year, then. Even now, I’m still trying to get back to a place where I can trust men. It was probably too soon for me to date. Plus, I heard about Roger dating the other women in the group. I probably shouldn’t have accepted the date. But I was feeling sorry for myself and thought it might cheer me up ... Oops.” She shrugged.

Jessica nodded, saying, “I think I get it. Your marriage left you more than a little jaded towards men and hearing that Roger was seeing so many women was probably a little too ... familiar. I can see how that would make you a bit anxious. I’m sorry.”

Shani took a deep breath and let it out. She looked over at her sons. Josh was coloring his paper placemat while David was working through the maze on his placemat.

She looked back at Jessica, “So, you and Roger Price, huh? How’s that going?”

“It’s been an interesting ride. It’s actually going really well. He’s a good guy. We did have one bump early on. But things are back on track now. We’ve even started talking about moving in together,” Jessica explained.

“Oh, wow. I’m glad things are going so well for you.” Shani paused briefly, then asked, “Can you please apologize to Roger for my behavior on our date.”

“Of course. I know he’ll be relieved to know he didn’t upset you,” Jessica offered.

After an awkward silence, Shani asked, “So are you working now?”

“Yeah, I went back to work, part-time, a couple of years ago. I perform water quality tests at Glade Environmental,” Jessica responded.

“Like, in a lab?” Shani asked, not sure what she meant.

“That’s part of it. It’s a small company. There are only ten of us. So, we wear more than one hat. Usually, I go out and collect water samples at pools or ponds and bring them back to the lab. If the lab tech is backed up, I perform some of the basic tests myself,” Jessica explained.

“Okay,” Shani acknowledged.

“What about you? Are you working?” Jessica asked.

“I’m actually starting to look for something, right now. David starts kindergarten in a couple months. Once they’re both out of the house, I can start working again. You know anyone who’s looking for a lab technician?” Shani asked.

“I’ll make a couple of calls and see if anyone from my old job with the county knows of anything. Give me your number so I can let you know if I find anything,” Jessica said.

Roger pulled under the awning of the Hilton. Mary stood up from the bench outside the sliding double entry doors, where she had been waiting. She walked forward, opened the door of Roger’s Z3 and dropped into the passenger seat.

She leaned across the console and he turned to give her a brief kiss on the lips.

Mary sat back and lifted the hem of her short sleeved, red, flower print dress above her waist and spread her knees the width of the seat. “What do you think?” she asked.

He glanced at her lap and, seeing her bare snatch, grinned. He asked, “Really? What brought this on?”

She smiled and let the dress fall back into place, saying, “Rose told me about your last date. She said going commando made her really horny. I thought back to our mall adventure and decided to try it again. You like?”

He just grinned and pressed down on the accelerator.

“Tell me, again, why you’re staying at a hotel?” He asked, as they pulled onto Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard.

“Mostly for comfort, but also convenience. I wanted to make sure I got a good night’s sleep before my meetings, which ruled out mom and dad’s couch. This place was close to the airport and both companies, so it seemed like a good choice,” she explained.

“Speaking of which, how did it go with Tropic today?” He wondered.

“Great! I think they’re going to make me an offer. I had some ideas about handling customs that seemed to intrigue them,” she enthused.

“That’s great. And did you say tomorrow’s interview is your first one with the Southern Florida Orange Growers Co-op?” He continued.

“Yeah, that should be interesting,” she offered, with a hint of sarcasm.

“Are you not looking forward to meeting them?” he asked, noticing her lack of enthusiasm.

She turned to him and curled her lip in a crooked smile, saying, “Managing a trade association for a bunch of farmers does not sound like a lot of fun to me.”

“Well, don’t let them pick up on your lack of enthusiasm or you definitely won’t get an offer. At least hear them out and give yourself a shot at the job. It’s better to have more options then fewer,” he coached, in a fatherly tone.

“Okay, dad,” she conceded.

“Wow, that’s twice in the last week that an adult woman has called me dad. I really have to watch what I say,” he grumbled.

They drove along quietly for a couple of blocks, then Roger asked, “So did Rose tell you about the pool party we’re having this weekend?”

“Yeah. Sounds like fun. Too bad I’ll miss it,” she pouted.

“I’m sure there will be other opportunities. Especially since it sounds like you’ll be moving down here soon,” he consoled her.

“Speaking of moving, sounds like you’re going to be living with my sister soon. Are you excited?” she asked.

“Yeah, I am. I’ve been living alone for a few years now, and I definitely miss having a woman around,” he enthusiastically replied.

“What about the girls? Are you ready for them?” She continued.

“Yeah, I’m ready. Greg and Lizzy were about their age when I lost them. Although it will be different with two girls who love being naked,” he suggested.

“Yeah, I can’t wait to see what it’s like with you, Rose and two girls all running around naked,” she scoffed.

He shrugged and said, “We’ll figure it out.”

They had a pleasant dinner at a nearby Japanese restaurant. Mary smacked his hand away when it snaked up under her dress as they made their way to the table. She ordered sushi and they both enjoyed the show of the chef preparing Roger’s Hibachi dinner.

After dinner, Mary invited Roger up to her room, where he spent twenty minutes helping her “take the edge off.” He wished her luck with her interview and told her to call him when she was finished.

It was a little after ten thirty in the morning when Rose arrived at Roger’s house with her girls. Roger heard their car on the dirt driveway and came out to greet them. His lean, toned body was on full display. Rose led the way up the steps, and he opened his arms to give her a hug, leaning in for a quick, soft kiss. Cindy and Sage darted past them, eager to get to the pool. Reaching the deck chairs, they dropped their towels on the first one. With their hands free, the girls quickly worked to remove their shirts and shorts. Next, they kicked their feet forward to remove their flip-flops. Before Rose had a chance to pull away from Roger and see the girl’s progress, they had turned, took a running start and jumped into the pool.

“Hey! Out!” Rose barked at the girls.

Sheepishly, the girls made their way to the steps and ascended out of the pool.

Rose strode over to one of the chairs and sat down, pulling a bottle of sun block out of her bag. “Come on over,” she said and gestured towards herself.

Roger made his way over and applied the lotion to Cindy, as Rose took care of Sage. Once the girls were done, they sat and pouted, waiting for the cream to be absorbed.

With the girls taken care of, Rose started to remove her own clothes. Roger sat down to enjoy the show, despite Rose’s matter-of-fact approach to taking off her tank top, shorts and underclothes and carefully folding them. Once Rose was naked, she sat in front of him, facing away, and said, “Earth to Roger.”

He snapped out of his trance and sensuously applied sunblock to her. She returned the favor and they exchanged a quick kiss.

“Have you heard back from your landlord, yet?” He asked, while they sat in the sun.

“Yeah. He accepted my thirty-day notice and agreed that my last day would be June twenty-second,” she explained.

“Well, you know you can move in before that,” he offered.

“I know. I just need a couple weeks to pack things up and wrap my head around it,” she said with a weak smile.

“Hey, are you sure you’re ready for this?” concern evident in his voice.

“Yes, definitely,” she exclaimed, confidently. “I’m still getting used to how fast we’re moving. But, I love you and know it’s the right thing to do.”

“How are the girls taking it?” he wondered.

She snorted and replied, “They couldn’t be happier. They’re moving to a big house where they can walk around naked all the time and swim in a pool whenever they want. They’ll miss a couple of their friends, but they’re definitely excited.”

It was nearly eleven when Jessica arrived with her children. As they ascended the steps to the pool deck, Roger was stalking around in the pool with his arms raised, growling, as Cindy and Sage shrieked and swam away from him. Rose was lounging on the other side of the pool reading a magazine. She lowered the magazine and waved as Jessica ascended the steps and came into view. Jessica waved back, saying, “Hi, Rose.”

As they came around the pool, each of the Carlson children saw Rose’s bare breasts. They didn’t see her bare crotch, as she had thoughtfully lowered her magazine over that area. Once all three children reached Rose’s chair, Jessica introduced them. “Rose, this is Sadie, Astrid and Josh.” She pointed out each child as she said their names.

Rose said hi as she sat up and each of the children said a short “hi”. She pointed at the pool, saying, “Those are my girls. The taller one with the darker hair is Sage. The shorter, blonder one is Cindy.”

Jessica placed her pool bag down by the chair next to Rose and asked, “Do you mind if I open the umbrella? I don’t want to get too much sun.”

“Sure,” Rose casually replied.

Jessica opened the nearby patio umbrella and moved it between her chair and Rose’s. Once she had it in place, Jessica pulled her top over her head and dropped her shorts to the ground. As Jessica removed her bra and panties, Rose stood, put her magazine down and repositioned the chair so more of it was in the shade. Astrid let out a quiet gasp as she noticed Rose’s bare crotch. Josh quietly watched his mother as she got undressed.

“Uuuugh,” Sadie groaned, “I’m going inside to watch TV.” She marched off towards the house in her shorts, shirt and sandals. Roger saw her heading for the house and started out of the pool.

As Jessica finished stripping and placed her clothes in the bag, Astrid asked, “Do I need to take my clothes off, mom?”

“Of course not, dear. It’s entirely up to you,” she said, smiling.

Astrid chewed on her lip as her eyes darted around to Rose and Roger, then turned glassy eyed as they settled on the Riley girls splashing in the water. Josh just pulled his shirt over his head, dropped his shorts and underwear and trotted over to the pool.

Roger went to his chair and toweled off briefly before wrapping it around his waist and heading for the house.

Astrid finally snapped out of her daze and started to remove her clothes. Once naked, she cautiously walked over to the pool and dipped a toe in the water. After a moment’s hesitation she jumped in and swam towards Sage and Cindy.

When Roger got into the house, he saw Sadie sitting on the couch with the TV on and searching through the channel guide. She flinched when she heard Roger say, “Looks like you found the TV remote. I have a few movies in the cabinet over there, if you want to use the VCR. The bathroom is over there,” he pointed towards the opaque glass-enclosed corner of the room. “Help yourself to some food, or let me know if you need anything.”